After more than six months of combing through audition entries, brutal death metallers Gutslit have found a new vocalist. But Bengaluru-based growler Kaushal L.S. was more of a wildcard entry. Gutslit bassist Gurdip Singh Narang says, “We – Aaron [Pinto, drummer], Prateek [Rajagopal, guitarist] – saw [Hyderabad death metal band] Godless earlier this year and we totally fell in love with the way Kaushal handled himself on stage. We need someone with that vocal power, who can command the stage. We spoke to him and he agreed to audition.”

Although the band had finalized a few names from the auditions – which required vocalists to cover their latest single “Scaphism” – Narang says it was a matter of “how to go about working with them”. The bassist adds, “It’s been a really long process, we want to thank everyone for being part of this.” The band have already jammed with Kaushal a few times and are now working to complete their upcoming second full-length album Brodequin, featuring eight tracks.

Gutslit’s new vocalist has come in more than six months after former frontman Aditya Barve left the band citing professional commitments in January. Although Kaushal has primarily showcased his death metal skills with bands such as Hyderabad act Godless, Bengaluru prog bands Eccentric Pendulum and Ironic Reversal as well as avant-garde metallers Orchid, the 25-year-old vocalist says he’s also on the same page as Gutslit (a band he first saw in 2008 in Bengaluru) when it comes to their grind influences. He says, “Gurdip was pretty open to what a vocalist could do at the audition. I love old-school grind, though – bands like Repulsion and Terrorizer — and death grind bands like Aborted. I do pig squeals, it’s not something out of my range, but I’ve also adapted it to my style.”

When it comes to lyrics, Kaushal is already four songs down on the eight-track album, which is slated to be wrapped up by December. “I have my work cut out for me with [respect to] lyrics because they have a theme set. I’m mostly influenced by Eighties horror and Sci-Fi movies, stuff by David Lynch.”

Now a part of five different bands, Kaushal didn’t think he’d join another group. The vocalist says with a laugh, “After Godless, I thought, ‘This is it. I have my plate full’.” While Ironic Reversal is a studio project and Eccentric Pendulum and Orchid are both based out of Bengaluru (making rehearsals easy to sort), Kaushal says Godless is not very strenuous since he wrote all vocal parts himself. He adds, “It’s somewhat the same dynamics with Gutslit, but it’s going to be harder since I have to learn the old songs as well.” Narang adds that the band will focus on finishing the album and jamming. Gigs can come later.

A senior editor at a startup company and a freelance illustrator, Kaushal is more than certain now that is plate is indeed full. He adds, “I have to manage [it all]. It’s kickass. I do it because, honestly, there’s nothing else I’d rather be doing.”